A&W Root Beer Makes Fun of M&Ms Retiring Their Different Characters

By Nicole Drum

Earlier this week, M&Ms stunned fans with the announcement that they were temporarily retiring their "spokescandies" and were replacing them instead with Saturday Night Live veteran Maya Rudolph to "champion the power of fun". Now, A&W Restaurants is weighing in, making fun of the M&M's announcement with one of their own. On Tuesday, A&W took to Twitter to announce a change to Rooty the Great Root Bear — specifically, his lack of pants.

"America, let's talk. Since 1963, Rooty the Great Root Bear has been our beloved spokesbear. We knew people would notice because he's literally a 6-foot-tall bear wearing an orange sweater. But now we get it — even a mascot's lack of pants can be polarizing.

Therefore, we have decided that Rooty will wear jeans going forward. Not to worry thought: he will remain our official spokesbear. After all, he is un-bear-ably cute and im-paw-ssible to replace. We are confident Rooty will continue to champion good food & good times for many years to come…now in denim."

So, what's the deal with M&M's?

On Monday, M&M's announced the retirement of the "spokescandies". The announcement came in the wake of some minor design changes to the Green M&M as well as the introduction of a purple M&M spokescandy last year and all-female packaging earlier this month. According to M&M's, Rudolph's first appearance as the brand's new "Chief of Fun" will in their upcoming Super Bowl LVII campaign.

"America, let's talk. In the last year, we've made some changes to our beloved spokescandies. We weren't sure if anyone would even notice. And we definitely didn't think it would break the internet. But now we get it -- even a candy's shoes can be polarizing. Which was the last things M&M's wanted, since we're all about bringing people together," the brand said in a statement posted to social media. "Therefore, we have decided to take an indefinite pause from the spokescandies. In their place, we are proud to introduce a new spokesperson America can agree on: the beloved Maya Rudolph. We are confident Ms. Rudolph will champion the power of fun to create a world where everyone feels they belong."

What do you think about A&W's post? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section!

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